Armstrong Australia’s marketing and strategic accounts manager Rob McLorinan has spoken out about the ways that his company is minimising the impact of its manufacturing processes on the environment.
According to McLorinan, there are a number of factors that need to be taken into account when assessing a product’s environmental impact. These include raw materials; production and distribution; the product in use; and the end of product life.
Raw materials
PVC (vinyl) is formed by combining two naturally occurring materials: chlorine (derived from common salt;) and ethylene. PVC in its pure form is an inert, non-toxic product. It is extremely versatile, durable and economical. Additives are used to endow a flooring product with special qualities such as durability, cleanability, colour choice, dimensional stability and UV resistance.
McLorinan says Armstrong has chosen to make its products as environmentally friendly as is possible. To this end, products such as Excelon resilient tile range is close to 85 per cent filler, ie. limestone, a naturally occurring inert and benign material. Armstrong also does not use any heavy metal stabilisers in its production.
Reducing emissions
Armstrong is an active participant in the Federal Government’s Greenhouse Challenge Plus program.
“The company has reduced its CO2 emissions by 25 per cent since 2000 while material processed increased 30 per cent over the same period,” McLorinan says.
Reducing waste
Armstrong plants at Braeside and Thomastown, Victoria are both accredited under a voluntary scheme by EcoRecycle Victoria as Wastewise facilities. One plant is approaching waste neutrality, where incoming recycled materials for use in process nearly equate with the amount of waste sent to landfill. Armstrong has also reduced dust going to land fill by six tonnes per year. McLorinan says the company has also implemented waste segregation systems for paper, metal, wood, oil and cans.
Recycling
“Armstrong is the only Australian manufacturer of resilient flooring products that collects off-cuts from site to return for recycling,” McLorinan says. In fact he claims that last year, Armstrong returned over 8 tonnes of material from the Austin/Mercy Hospitals project for recycling back into new flooring, this waste would normally go to land fill. Another further 10 tonnes of recycled plastic shopping bags and 80 tonnes of post consumer recycled plastic bottles were used in the manufacture of Armstrong flooring in 2004.
Packaging
Armstrong tile cartons are Australian made from 90 per cent recycled paper and are 100 per cent recyclable and biodegradable. Tile pallets are Australian made of 100 per cent timber from sustainable controlled plantation forests and are 100 per cent recyclable and biodegradable. The shrink-wrap that surrounds palletised cartons is Australian made and 100 per cent recyclable, according to McLorinan.